Led by Chipps’, Widman’s PRs, Rochester girls finish 4th at home invite
- Val T.
- 7 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Valley’s Miller finishes 4th overall with 79; NM shoots 456, takes 15th
BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS
Sports Editor, RTC
Rochester girls golf coach Dan Bailey said “not in my wildest dreams” did he think his team would finish fourth at the Rochester Invitational at Round Barn Golf Club at Mill Creek Saturday.
But it was the Lady Zs who shot a 389 and finished fourth in a field of 18 teams.
Meanwhile, Tippecanoe Valley shot a 409 and finished ninth, and North Miami shot a 456 and placed 15th.
Rochester’s low scorer was again junior Molly Moore, who fired an 81. She has been the low scorer at every match this season.
Lexi Haughs added a 92, Lily Chipps had a 98, and Audrey Widman had a 118.
Both Chipps and Widman shot personal bests for 18 holes.
The 389 was the low score for the team for 18 holes. Rochester beat Manchester by 12 strokes after losing a nine-hole match to the Lady Squires five days earlier at Round Barn.
Savana Miller Aly Brown
Valley’s low scorer was junior Savana Miller, who shot a 79 and finished fourth among individuals. Aly Brown added a 94, Brystal Sands and Taylor Long each had a 118, and Brie Scott had a 128.
Bryanne Sturch was North Miami’s low scorer with a 94. Alex Blackford added a 100, Savannah Rentschler had a 122, and Alivia Haynes had a 140.
Logansport won the tournament with a 367. Peru’s Piercey Dyer was the medalist with a 68, edging South Bend St. Joe’s Lucy Dunham by two strokes. Dyer also shot a 68 in winning medalist at last year’s Three Rivers Conference tournament at Round Barn.
Bailey said Moore finished her round with a bogey and two double bogeys in her final four holes. That might have left sour feelings at the end.
“If you look at the big picture, she played really well most of the day,” Bailey said. “She got herself into some situations the last three or four holes that made the finish pretty tough.”
Bailey praised Haughs’ mentality on the course.
“She’s much more coachable,” Bailey said. “She’s much more open to thinking about the things we’re talking about with her. I also think some of the frustration that she’s feeling is that she senses the end is pretty near. A lot of times, the senior goes one of two ways. Either they kind of stop trying because it’s the end, and they just want to have fun, or they put a bunch of pressure on themselves, and I think that’s kind of where Lexi is. She’s getting frustrated because she’s not playing the way she wants to, and I think knowing we have three more weeks left or so just piled onto her. But she’s been very coachable and very open to what we’re trying to get her to do, so I’ve been really happy with that situation.”
Bailey said Chipps achieved a breakthrough after a conversation the two had about a week and a half before the tournament.
“She was very open to some swing ideas that I felt were going to help her shoot a little bit better scores,” Bailey said. “Maybe fortunately, she started to see some results right away, so she’s been hitting her driver better than she ever has. Her work around the greens … We’ve really been working on her chipping motion. She’s not quite comfortable, but it looks really good. It looks close. And I think she can start to see the light at the end of the tunnel so to speak.”
Widman has been playing through pain on every shot, according to Bailey. Bailey declined to specify further on what is wrong with her.
“To have a PR for your entire career in our golf course is a really big deal,” Bailey said. “That’s what I told Lily and Audrey. Having a personal best is awesome, but doing it on our golf course … Our golf course is hard. … To do that and still have a personal best and still keep a smile on her face, (I’m) super happy.”
ROCHESTER INVITATIONAL
at Round Barn Golf Club at Mill Creek Saturday (par 72)
Logansport 367, Penn 372, South Bend St. Joe 377, ROCHESTER 389, Culver Academy 399, Manchester 401, Western 402, Kokomo 408, TIPPECANOE VALLEY 409, Elkhart 415, Mishawaka Marian 419, John Glenn 429, Twin Lakes 432, Northwestern 441, NORTH MIAMI 456, Maconaquah 461, Peru 471, Guerin Catholic 509
ROCHESTER (389): Molly Moore 81, Lexi Haughs 92, Lily Chipps 98, Audrey Widman 118
VALLEY (409): Savana Miller 79, Aly Brown 94, Brystal Sands 118, Taylor Long 118, (Brie Scott 128)
NORTH MIAMI (456): Bryanne Sturch 94, Alex Blackford 100, Savannah Rentschler 122, Alivia Haynes 140
Top five individuals: 1. Piercey Dyer (Peru) – 68, 2. Lucy Dunham (South Bend St. Joe) – 70, 3. Taylor Morrison (Hamilton Heights) – 76, 4. SAVANA MILLER (VALLEY) – 79, 5. Piper Spangle (Manchester) – 80
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